You Are My Mission
by W1TCH-0F-LOV3-DE4TH-AND-5PACE
Summary: Mariya Zolnerowich can never forget the day her parents were killed in a car crash caused by a man with a mask and a metal arm. Two years later, she's determined to hunt down the Winter Soldier and make him pay for ruining her life. Will Mariya truly succeed in killing the world's greatest assassin or will she see his true nature: a lonely, brainwashed man who just needs love.
1. Let the Misery Begin

"Mom, are we there yet?"

"No Mariya. We're still twenty minutes away from the Smithsonian," said Mrs. Zolnerowich.

"...Dad, could you drive a little faster? I'm scared that the tickets for the captain america exhibit will be sold out and i'll never get to see my favorite hero!"

"Are you forgetting that we're in D.C.? For crying out loud, look at all this traffic. I didn't know we were still in Los Angeles."

Mariya sighs and places her feet up against the seat, "Los Angeles doesn't have the nation's greatest museum nor a special exhibit dedicated to America's hottest hero."

"See that's what I don't understand...what's so great about this Captain America guy anyway? I mean, he was just a war hero from the World War 2 era."

"...Am i really hearing this right now Dad? Are you really questioning why Captain America is the greatest guy to ever live? Not only did he defeat the Nazis and help America gain personal victory but he saved the entire universe from a complete lunatic!"

"Yes yes...but i think it's a bit unhealthy to be obsessed over one man, even if he is a hero to millions."

Mariya smirks as she grabs her phone and logs onto tumblr, "Clearly you haven't seen a lot of the people on tumblr…"

Mrs. Zolnerowich stares at the GPS and sighs, "With all the money we paid for this trip, we could have gone on a vacation to Russia."

Mariya squeezes her mom's shoulder gently and smiles, "We can always go next year! I mean, I think it's pretty nice if we have family vacations every year! It really bonds us together...like three perogis in a pot...speaking of which, can we stop by a Russian bakery on the way home?"

Mariya's parents laugh at they begin googleing Russian sweet shops located in DC but everything is interrupted when a grey hummer hits the back of the car and sends it flying into the air before landing upside down.

Mariya groans in pain as she feels glass near her temple and cheek, "M...Mom? D..Dad?"

_**Blood is all over the windshield and windows; the airbags are pressed up against the unresponsive bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Zolnerowich.**_

"Mommy...Papa...are you ok?"

**_Police sirens are now heard in the distance as gunshots are being fired all over the place._**

Mariya slowly scoots her body from under the vehicle and looks up to see a man, clad in a black stealth suit while his face is covered by a black mask. In his left, metal hand is an M4A1 rifle while in his right, he holds a grenade. Mariya stares in fear as he begins making his way to where she is, while he force opens random cars and searches for his enemy, his mission.

"I..I'm gonna kill you, you bastard…" Quickly picking up a long piece of glass, she stands up and begins running towards her target. While blood gushes from her body, Mariya increases her pace before she runs and tackles the man, trying to her best to plunge the glass in his neck.

While she manages to punch him in the eye, the Winter Soldier quickly grabs her arm and twists it so hard that her shoulder is dislocated, leaving Mariya in complete main. As she lay on the ground, whimpering in complete fear, she stares at the figure now looking down upon her. "Why don't you just kill me here?! You already killed my parents so kill me too!"

Aiming the gun at her temple, he slowly takes off his mask and looks into her eyes.

"Y..You...why do you look so familiar? Oh my god...You're Bucky Barnes, Captain America's best friend! Y...You should've died years ago when you fell from the train and into that icy river!"

"...Who the hell is Bucky?"

Before Mariya can say anything else, she feels something sharp hit against her temple and she's sent into complete darkness.

_Beeeep. Beeeep. Beeep._

_"Doctor! The patient is regaining consciousness."_

_"Her pulse is stable but she still lost a lot of blood."_

_"Should we check for signs of PTSD?"_

Mariya slowly opens her eyes and looks around the hospital room, hoping that her eyes will regain their focus.

"Mariya, can you hear me?"

"Y...Yeah...where am I?"

"You're at the D.C. Hope Emergency Hospital. Can you see how many fingers I'm holding up?" The doctor proceeds to hold up 4 fingers.

"Four..where are my parents? I really need to get home. I think I fell asleep in the car and got heat stroke."

As she scans the faces of all the nurses and doctors in the hospital, she realizes that her "dream" was actually real.

"D..Doc, p..please tell me that i'm still dreaming."

"Mariya calm down. Your body has been under alot of stress these past few hours and we don't want you hurting your self any more!"

Mariya hisses as she clutches her left arm and gasps when she sees a cast wrapped around it, "WHAT HAPPENED TO ME? WHAT'S GOING ON HERE? ARE YOU TRYING TO TURN ME INTO SOME KIND OF SOCIAL EXPERIMENT?!"

"Nurse! She needs to be sedated now!"

As the nurses grab hold of her arms and legs, Mariya is trashing her body all over the place while yelling out, "HELP ME! HELP ME PLEASE!" Just then, she feels needle connect with her neck and soon the whole room begins to slow down and she feels her eyelids closing on her, even though she still wants to be awake. Before her eyes are completely closed, a man with a black eyepatch stares at her intently and whispers, "We'll be in contact soon Ms. Zolnerowich."

_**Hey guys! W1TCH-0F-LOV3-DE4TH-AND-5PACE HERE WITH A NEW FIC! As of right now, I am really into the Captain America: Winter Soldier movie so I decided that I need to write a fic involving Bucky and an OC. I'm really sorry if this chapter is short but I just wanted to see if readers are actually interested in reading more of this story. If this fic actually becomes a success and i'm actually given the opportunity to write a second chapter, I can guarantee that this story will involve a lot of intense feelings that will make you wanna punch a wall, cry, or give Bucky/Mariya a really long hug. Please let me know if you liked this story. I always appreciate feedback!**_


	2. An Unexpected Proposal

_"We'll be in contact soon Ms. Zolnerowich…"_

Mariya's eyes instantly open as she quickly sits up in her bed and looks around the hospital room. "How did you know my name…?" Mariya glances at the IV still lodged in her arm and quickly rips it out before letting out a hiss. If there was one thing Mariya had to do right now, it was to get out of the hospital. Slowly swinging her legs over to the side of the bed, she places both of her hands on the bedside desk for support and slowly makes her way to the door. "Damn painkillers...do your damn job!"

Once she reaches the door and slowly turns the knob, the man with the eyepatch, no the sunglasses, stands in front of her with a stern look on his face. "And where do you think you're going Miss Zolnerowich?"

Mariya slowly backs away from the man as he makes his way inside the room and locks the door behind him. "W..Who are you?"

The man simply takes a seat in the corner of the room, taking off his sunglasses slowly so that he can talk to Mariya with direct eye contact, "I am not the main concern at the moment, I believe the focus should be on you Miss Zolnerowich. Now I will reveal my name to you later once we move you to a better location."

"I'm not going anywhere with you! For all I know, you could be some pedophile that preys on injured teenagers! So unless you reveal your name to me right now, I will refrain from talking to you. Oh, and if you even think about forcing me out of this place, I promise I'll scream so loud that all the doctors in America will hear me!"

The man smirks as he takes out his phone and begins typing on it, "You've got guts kid but I'm not here to listen to you throw petty threats at me. I'm here to personally assist young adults who have experienced a traumatizing event in their life..." He then slides the phone across the floor and nods at Mariya, signaling her to read the message.

Picking up the phone, Mariya quickly scans the typed message:

**_Can't talk here I'm afraid. There are people listening everywhere. Need to go to a more safer place to talk. Name is Nick Fury, previous director of the organization S.H.I.E.L.D. You had an encounter with the Winter Soldier did you not?_**

Mariya looks up at the man who now has a finger at his lips, "Sir, isn't this a bit sudden? I mean, I hardly even know you…"

"And that is why I am offering you to come with me to an even better rehabilitation center that will focus on helping you overcome this traumatizing event while allowing you to better yourself for the future."

"Can I really trust this guy? I've heard of Director Fury before but this all seems so strange and wasn't S.H.I.E.L.D disbanded a while ago? And what does he mean by 'better yourself for the future'?" Walking over to Fury, Mariya extends her hand while possessing a stern expression on her face, "I graciously accept your request. When do we leave?"

Fury shakes her hand firmly as he pulls out a stack of papers from under his coat, "Right now, I had the liberty of discharging you while you were passed out."

"I'm sorry but is this really necessary?" Mariya awkwardly bows her head as she passes by individuals in the waiting room, while Fury wheels her out and heads towards the parking garage.

"I'm afraid that although you may not have suffered any major damage, extreme activity is not allowed."

Mariya scoffs as she crosses her arms across her chest and stares at the night sky, "Why me though? I'm nothing special."

Fury shakes his head as he pulls Mariya to the side and takes out his phone, alerting Hill to bring the car over, "Tell me Mariya, did your parents ever tell you what they did for a living?"

"Well my dad was an engineer and my mom was a lab technician. Why do you ask?"

Fury opens the car door as he lifts Mariya into the back seat and takes a seat next to her, "I want us in New York in an hour." Hill quietly nods as she glances at Mariya through the rearview mirror before accelerating the car and driving off the hospital grounds."

"Would you please tell me what you real intention is and why did you ask about my parents?"

"How much do you know about this Winter Soldier character?"

Mariya's eyes narrow as she remembers the image of the man, no the murderer, who ruined her life hours ago, "I know he's an unmerciful, strong killing machine with no conscience whatsoever. What does he have to do with anything?"

This time Hill responds, "We too have been trying to track him down but so far his whereabouts are unknown and we don't know if he's planning another attack. We're pretty desperate here so we're just trying to obtain as much information as we can."

"Again, why am I involved in this? I have no connection to this Winter Soldier guy!"

"Any guesses on who he might be?" Fury asks

Just as Mariya is about to say James Buchanan Barnes, she shuts her mouth and shrugs, "Beats me."

"We know you personally came into contact with him. We saw everything going on?"

"I was just trying my best to kill that bastard! I grabbed a piece of glass and ran up to him, thinking I could stab him or slice is throat; but in the end, he twisted and broke my arm before knocking me out with his big ass gun!"

"But at one point, you had this look; a look that made us believe that you knew him personally.."

"Well, at first I thought he was Steve Rogers' best friend, James Buchanan Barnes, but then I realized that Bucky, er James, died years ago when he fell into that icy river."

Fury purses his lips together and clears his throat before turning to Maria, "And just how do you know about Barnes?"

Mariya twiddles her fingers together as she bows her head and mumbles, "I'm a history geek and I'm also a big fan of Captain America…"

Hill smirks as she stares at the embarrassed girl, "You're not related to a Phil Coulson are you?"

"Who's Phil Coulson?"

"Nevermind."

Fury takes out another file from his coat and hands it to Mariya, "Take a look."

Mariya curiously opens up the file labeled confidential in Russian and sees a picture of a frozen Bucky Barnes trapped in some sort of steel freezer, "My assumptions were correct?"

Fury nods as he stares out the window, "James Buchanan Barnes was only assumed to be dead. We later found out that Armin Zola, an evil mastermind recruited by S.H.I.E.L.D to help improve the organization, injected Barnes with a superhuman serum that not only increased his physical strength but also his strategical thinking abilities. The Barnes that helped Steve Rogers during World War 2 no longer exists, I'm afraid his memories were erased. Now getting back to the topic of your parents...did they ever tell you why the escaped from Russia?"

"To escape the communist regime that was going on during their time, who wouldn't wanna escape that?

"Dmitri and Zoe Zolnerowich were ex agents of the organization known as HYDRA. Your mother was the one who specifically created the serum for Barnes and your father created the machine that would eventually suppress all of his memories. They were part of his mission all along."

"T..That's impossible. How could my mom and dad be involved in something so despicable? Besides, this all would've happen during the late 1940s-50s..have you seen my parents? They're only in their late 30s!"

"You'll be suprised at what certain serums can do. Some can increase your physical strength, others can slow down your aging process…"

Mariya stares at Fury in disbelief as she clutches the folder in her hands tightly, "A..Are you saying my parents took some sort of serum that slowed down their aging process?! That's ridiculous! There's not way 90 year old individuals can look like 30 years olds, even with a stupid chemical serum.

"James Barnes and Steve Rogers are 95 years old and they still look like they're in pretty good shape," Hill remarks.

Mariya slowly laughs and stares at Fury for the longest time before tears start pouring from her eyes at an uncontrollable rates, "My parents were the two greatest people who ever lived. I refuse to accept that they were responsible for tuning someone innocent into a complete killing machine!"

Fury places a hand on Mariya's shoulder and squeezes it gently, "I agree, your parents were good people. That's why they turned their life around for you."

"I..I still don't understand how I'm just now learning all of this information now, right after they died. Is that why I'm being taken to your secret headquarters? Because the Winter Soldier is somehow now gonna come after me?"

Fury shakes his head as he pulls out his phone and looks at the time, "There's no telling what he'll do and we really don't wanna take any chances with just letting you roam out in the public eye...and we would also like to offer you a position as one of S.H.I.E.L.D's newest agents."

"Agent? I thought S.H.I.E.L.D was disbanded?"

"We now work undercover. HYDRA is still out there and we're their number on target."

"But why would I become an agent? I'm not some superhuman, ultra flexible femme fetale type girl? I'm just s history geek with a boring life."

Fury shakes his head, "As I said before...you underestimate yourself Miss Zolnerowich. We offer you this job because we would like to take you under our wing for safety purposes and at the same time, you could be the key to leading us to Bucky Barnes."

"Me? I thought Captain America was his main priority?"

"He is...but now that he let you get away, his mission isn't complete just yet. Why would he leave one member of the Zolnerowich family alive?"

Mariya stares a Fury for a long time before darkness takes over the entire car. "What's going on?"

Suddenly, bolted gates rise from the ground as a huge rock covers the entrance to the cave. Rows of lights slowly begin to turn on as the floor beneath them begins to sink, revealing a dark but highly complex room surrounded by computers and laboratory materials.

"Welcome to the new S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters Miss Zolnerowich."

Bucky stares at the men currently working on improving his metal arm. Why couldn't he stop thinking about the girl that wanted to kill him on that bridge? Why couldn't he kill her? He had no problem killing her damn parents but why not...her?

The guards fill the room as Baron von Strucker enters and stands in front of Bucky, "Did you eliminate those traitors like I commanded you to? Did you eliminate Captain America?"

"Two out of the four requested were eliminated...I couldn't kill her or him...it's like they knew me and I...knew them. The man seemed like someone I knew a long time ago and the girl...she seemed like someone I used to have a connection with. Who am I really?" Bucky says as he looks up at Von Strucker with lost and confused eyes, "Are they really my enemies?"

Von Strucker strikes Bucky across the face as he grabs him by his hair, "Do not forget that you have a mission to complete you imbecile! Do not forget that it was I who told Zola to spare your life and turn you into something useful!" Turning to one of the men, Von Strucker commands, "Be sure to permanently erase his memories this time; time keeps ticking and here we are listening to such utter nonsense!

Bucky glares at Von Strucker and moves his head away from his grasp as he leans back in his chair and allows the machine to tie him down while one of the men slides something in his mouth to distract him from the pain he's about to receive. As Von Strucker leaves the room, Bucky writhes and screams in pain as thousand of electrical volts are sent shooting throughout his head.

**_Poor Bucky! :( Things are definitely going to be getting more interesting in future chapters. I hope you all enjoy this second chapter as well :) Please continue to provide any feedback as it is VERY much appreciated! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and continue to read You Are My Mission!_**


	3. Welcome to your new life

"Any questions before we begin?" Fury says.

"Why am I doing this again?" Maria asks as she pulls her hair up in a ponytail and takes off her jacket as she stares at the obstacle course in front of her.

"We must first test your physical abilities as well as your stamina. I'm sure you're well aware that as an agent, you'll be required to run long distances, go against individuals more than twice your height and weight, as well as jump from high distances. That's why we have this little obstacle set up. You may start whenever you're ready."

Mariya closes her eyes and takes a deep breath before she begins to run towards her first course. The first course was a set of hurdles, each one five feet in height. Maria increases her pace as she heads straight towards the hurdle before jumping as high as she can go….and lands directly on top of the hurdle.

"Let me try again! That was just a warm up!"

Fury nods and takes a seat along the wall, "Feel free to try as much as you want. Time isn't an issue right now."

Mariya walks back to the starting point and takes another deep breath before running towards the hurdle again. Bending her knees and stretching her legs as far apart as she could, she manages to leap over the first hurdle before she crashes into the second one.

Fury claps as he points to the first hurdle, "You managed to jump over one. Congratulations."

Mariya groans as she rubs her thighs and slowly gets up, "I think I pulled a muscle when I leaped though."

Fury smirks and points to the other obstacles around the room, "Would you like to try something else?"

Mariya scans the room notices a small pool in the center, while a rope hangs above it. "What's that?"

"That is a pool specifically designed to help train you in terms of holding your breath underwater for a long period of time. The rope above it serves as a sort of test to see if you can run over to where it is, catch it, and swing to the other side without falling to a perpetual death. Although the pool isn't very big, it's 50 feet deep and fully equipped with a platform that will lift you up when it senses your oxygen levels decreasing at an alarming rate."

Mariya stares at the rope 5 feet away from her and the deep pool that could swallow her up in case she couldn't make it to the other side. "I know I can do this…" She steps back and ends up 10 feet away from the pool, allowing her some distance to jump and catch the rope. With her eyes completely fixated on the rope, she runs towards it and jumps a couple seconds too early, allowing her to catch the end of the rope, before she plunges straight into the deep pool.

"Activate underwater cam now as well as oxygen level status," Fury says as he walks over to the computer and stares at the screen.

Mariya was definitely not an individual that knew how to remain calm in a perilous situation. She was thrashing and sinking deeper as the seconds flew by. As she finally hit the bottom, she slowly opens her eyes and mumbles, "Help me…" before losing consciousness.

_"Mariya...Mariya wake up."_

_Mariya opens her eyes slowly as a dark figure stands beside her body, "D..Did you save me?"_

_The figure laughs and presses a warm hand against her cheek, "You're dreaming my little kotyonok. We'll be seeing each other soon though."_

_Mariya smiles and presses her face against the warm hand, "Why does that name sound so...familiar?"_

_All of a sudden, the warm hand caressing her cheek is replaced with a steel hand wrapped around her throat, while a pair of icy blue eyes stare down at her, "I finished your family, now I will finish you."_

_Mariya coughs as she tries to push the hand away from her throat. In a hoarse voice, she cries out, "Why are you trying to kill me?!"_

_The Winter Soldier smirks and leans close to her ear, tightening his grip around her throat, "You don't remember kotyonok? I created you…" He takes out his knife and presses it against her throat, "and now I will end you," he says before slicing the blade against her throat._

Mariya opens her eyes widely and sits up, while coughing up the water that managed to stay inside her throat.

Fury helps her lift up her head and wraps her in a towel before walking over to Agent Hill, "Please prepare a room for her but before she's escorted there, I want a physical/mental evaluation done on her."

Maria Hill nods as she helps Mariya up and takes her to the medical quarters. "We'll be doing some tests on you before I take you to your room. Understood?"

Mariya nods as she follows Agent Hill into the medical room and sits on the bed.

Hill sits at the desk as she programs the computer and creates a new file just for Mariya. "Please tell me your full name, date of birth, height, weight, eye color, skin tone, basically anything physical that we'd need to know."

"Full name is Mariya Natalia Zolnerowich, born August 13, 1996, 130 pounds, 5'4, green eyes, auburn hair, fair skin tone. I had asthma when i was younger so I'm not entirely sure if I'll still need to use an inhaler."

Hill nods as she enters all the information into the computer and takes out the proper medical supplies. "Now we're gonna take your blood pressure, observe your heart rate, and take a sample of blood to determine what type of blood type you are, unless you already know all this information?"

Mariya shakes her head as Hill wraps the blood pressure band around her arm and begins to pump.

As the tests are being taken, Mariya tries to recollect the nightmare that occurred to her while she was still unconscious. It's not strange that individuals that recently experienced a traumatic would have nightmares that usually involved the person who caused it; but for some reason, Mariya felt as if she had a connection to her murderer.

Once Hill takes blood from her arm and seals in a case, she escorts Maria to the psychological therapy room. "Okay so now that the physical part is done, we're gonna be testing your mind. I know that with what's happened in the past 20 hours, you're mind's gonna be a little blank but I'm sure that this won't be a complicated task for you. I need you to tell me how you're feeling at the moment. All information is highly confidential just between the two of us."

"While I was unconscious…I dreamt of a figure, a man, that I seemed to have known before. Of course, I didn't know who he was but he knew me."

Hill stares at Mariya with a concerned look on her face as she takes a seat next to her, "Did you see his face or something that could possibly connect to who he is?"

"It was the Winter Soldier. He choked me in the dream and he said 'I created you and now I will end you,'" Mariya says as she tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. "I think I'm going mad from everything that's happened to me. I have no memory of ever meeting this psychopath yet my parents created him...so I guess anything is possible." Mariya laughs as she wipes the tears now streaming down her face, "Isn't it funny how life can change in the blink of an eye? I mean, right now I always thought I was gonna be exploring the Smithsonian and learning more about my favorite hero; but here I am, at S.H.I.E.L.D's secret headquarters, hiding from a man that I may have a connection to. I guess I'm not so normal after all."

Hill wraps a comforting arm around Maria's shoulder as she hands her a couple of tissues, "I, myself, suffered a lot up until I was about your age. I lost my mother to childbirth and my father, well, he never wanted me. I didn't really have a place to call home until I joined the military and to tell you the truth, the military taught me a lot of stuff. Not only did it teach me to be strong, but it taught me that as long as you have comrades by your side, you'll never be truly alone in a situation. I promise you that we'll take care of you here and we'll doing everything in our power to train you so that you can accomplish your own mission of tracking down the Winter Soldier. But remember, revenge isn't everything."

Mariya nods as she stands up and gives Agent Hill a quick smile, "Thanks. You know, for someone so serious and badass, you actually have that soft big sister side."

"I show it in different ways. I can't let the guys out here see me as a big softie, now can I?"

Mariya smiles and follows Hill out of the office as she's escorted to her room, "No you can't."

Nick Fury sits at his desk as he stares at the file before him. "Engage security lockdown."

Once all the windows and doors in the office are locked, Nick removes his sunglasses and opens the file, revealing a large pic of a cryogenic encased Bucky Barnes. As Nick scans all the papers in front of him, he learns that not only was the Winter Soldier a Soviet assassin, he served as a teacher to the students enrolled in the Red Room program; his most well known student was Natasha Romanoff, also known as Black Widow. "Well i'll be damned…"

"I hope this doesn't change your outlook on me Sir."

Nick lifts his head up to see Natasha smirking down at him as she makes herself comfortable in the chair located in front of his desk, "I hope you know that I gave Rogers a copy of that file too."

"I know you're more than capable to sneak into a highly locked down room Agent Romanoff but would it kill you to knock?"

Natasha shrugs her shoulders and nods at the picture of Bucky, "We're going after him aren't we?"

"As if we don't have a choice."

" I know Capt. and Falcon are already on the move to hunt him down. I can easily hack and gather information on his whereabouts in a worse case scenario but he can't be too far from D.C."

Nick stands up from his seat and slips the file into his desk, locking it, before disengaging the security locks in the room, "How would you feel about training a newcomer?"

"I'm not too keen on the idea but I guess I'm up for it. Who's the fresh meat?"

Nick stands near the tinted window and watches as Hill and Mariya pass by his office, "That girl, right there."

Natasha glances at the girl and nods towards her, "Isn't that the girl who lost her parents to the Winter Soldier. What's she doing here at headquarters?"

"She seeks revenge for the death of her parents. I'm allowing her to complete this personal mission so that we can capture him in the process."

Natasha raises an eyebrow as she looks at Nick, "Isn't that a bit selfish?"

"I think of it as more of, killing two birds with one stone. We gain a new agent, she gets her revenge, and we capture one of the world's deadliest assassin's and set him right."

"I'm in; but don't you think she's a bit young."

"Are you really gonna play that card? Last time I checked, you were trained at a young age as well Agent Romanoff."

"I had no choice. If I declined my training, I would've been killed or held as a prisoner in that Communist hellhole. I just did what i had to do."

Nick nods, "How is Agent Barton?"

Natasha smiles as she gives him a thumbs up, "I think he's turning into Stark; he arrived late to the party. By the time he arrived at S.H.I.E.L.D's original headquarters, the whole place was blasted. Guess he was too busy trying to retrieve the file from Kiev."

Nick turns to Natasha and gives her a puzzled look, "Weren't you supposed to be creating a new identity for yourself?"

"I'm tired of lying to be honest. Rogers sort of guilt trip me into the whole, 'don't lie all the time to save your ass,' thing so I guess...I'm just gonna have to accept my past, embrace the present, and hope for the future. I just gotta be me for once."

Nick nods as he goes back to his desk and begins typing away, "I respect you for that Agent. I expect to see you in the training room at 8:00 a.m tomorrow. Understood?"

"Understood."

"Now get out of my office."

The Winter clenches his fists in anger as he stares at a picture of Steve Rogers, "I will kill him this time...he will not manipulate me again!"

Von Strucker nods as he hands him a picture of Mariya, "What about her?"

Taking out his dagger in one swift motion, he plunges the knife directly on top of the picture and right through the steel table. "I will end her as well. I will NOT fail this time."

Von Strucker places a hand on his shoulder and gives it a firm squeeze, "You are indeed a gift to mankind. I believe in your abilities and I know you will not be the cause for the destruction of Hydra. You are the greatest shoulder who's ever lived." We will fetch you when we need you." As he leaves the room, he nods to the two guards to take Bucky to the cryogenic freezing room.

As the Winter Soldier is escorted the room and put inside the freezer, he lets out an aggravated and pained scream, letting every soldier, including Von Strucker, know that he was determined to kill the two targets, as well as anyone who would stand in his way.


	4. Be Prepared

It's scary to see how much the world can change in just a period of two years. The safest of neighborhoods are now subject to violence and high crime rates, the government is no longer an agency that protects and helps its citizens; instead, the main focus is to rob the country of the wealth while watching the people fight against each other. Even hardworking, trustworthy citizens are no longer found; these days, even the friendliest of citizens are corrupted with the mindset of "survival of the fittest." As Mariya sat in the surveillance room, her heart was filled with sadness and anger. Isn't America supposed to be a land based on truth and justice? To her, it seemed like America was just becoming a laughing stock to the other countries in the world. She finally decides to switch the multiple television screens into one, "Let's see what's going on in the world today?" As she flipped to CNN, the following headline was broadcasted: "U.S. Government to work together with HYDRA; could mean a bright and beautiful future for America."

"You've got to my kidding me? HYDRA is now gonna be a 'savior' for this country? The day that happens is the day that hell turns frozen!"

Just then, Fury appears and takes a seat next to her, "And to think, America used to be against adopting a new security agency. It took a lot of work to allow S.H.I.E.L.D to work with the FBI. It appears that we may need to relocate again. After all, HYDRA is still on the hunt for S.H.I.E.L.D agents working undercover."

Mariya stood from her seat as she returned the screens back to surveillance mode, "If you need me, I'll be in the training room."

Mariya hit the punching bag with as much force as she could exert as her thoughts wandered back to the first day she had been brought to S.H.I.E.L.D's secret headquarters. The scrawny, feeble teen that had walked through the doors with rage in her heart had transformed into a skilled, well built agent with goals and determinations in her heart and mind. After being granted permission from Fury, Natasha was determined to teach Mariya everything she knew. Mariya learned how to flex and bend her body in ways that seemed impossible while also being introduced and taught the art of being a femme fatale, every man's worst nightmare.

_"__Here's something my master once taught me," she said as she brushed Mariya's hair, "there's nothing wrong with being beautiful and badass, as long as you're using your beauty as an advantage."_

_Mariya frowned as she stared at herself in the mirror, "I don't think I'm close to the world 'beautiful.' I mean, I've got a little acne on my cheeks and I constantly look like I haven't slept in days."_

_"__You are Russian aren't you?" Natasha asks in Russian._

_Mariya nods, "Both of my parents were full blooded Russian."_

_Natasha smiles as she pulls Mariya's hair into a ponytail and makes her look at herself in the mirror again, "Russian women have a certain beauty and charm that captures the attention and hearts of men. I have never met an ugly Russian woman and I don't think i ever will. I think every woman is beautiful in a sense, it's just most don't realize their potential. By the time I'm done training you, you'll be able to steal a man's wallet and he'll never notice a thing."  
_  
Not only had Mariya learned how to steal a man's wallet but she had also learned how to properly handle and use a gun. It was definitely difficult at first, but within two days she was able to shoot a target in the head and chest areas.

Steve Rogers, also known as Captain America, even managed to teach a few important moves; but of course, her progress was slow because she could never focus when her favorite hero was standing right in front of her.

"_Okay Mariya, I want you to block my attack by crossing your right arm in front of face and holding it steady. Got it?"_

_Maryia nods as she places her feet in fighting stance and prepares to block Steve's punch. Just as she's about to block the attack, she ends up punching Steve in the chest, unintentionally, and hisses as she cradles her now red knuckle._

_"__Are you made out of steel or something?!"_

_Steve laughs as he grabs a roll of elastic tape and an ice pack as he wraps her knuckle and and places the ice pack on top of it, "I think you did that on purpose."_

_Mariya scoffs as she kisses her knuckle area and shields it from Steve, "Yes because I clearly wanted a bruised knuckle from the terminator."_

_"__The what?"_

_Mariya shakes her head, "I forgot you don't understand a lot of references."_

_Steve shrugs, "Sorry, still trying to adjust to modern life. But answering your question on why I think you hit me on purpose, let's just say I know more than you think."_

_"__What do you mean?"_

_"__It's been confirmed from close sources that I'm your favorite hero."_

_Mariya laughs nervously as she sits on the bench next to him, "Well yeah...but I mean, who wouldn't admire you? You're everything a soldier should be. You're like the ultimate American."_

_Steve smiles as he looks down at the ground before looking back up at her, "I wonder if you'd still say that to the 5'4, 90 pound me."_

_Mariya gently hits Steve's arm as she hands him a bottle of water, "Hey, you may not have had the physicality part down at first, but you had the morals and beliefs of a soldier. Hell, if they had a Mister America pageant, you'd win every year! And I'm not just saying that cuz you've got a great body. Just putting it out there."_

_Steve laughed as he helped Mariya up and led her back to the center of the room. Putting both fists up he says, "Try to attack me with everything you've got." As Mariya once again got into her fighting stance, she began to throw a series of punches and kicks at Steve while he managed to block each and every one of them. Finally she notices his weak spot; his legs were spread apart far too much and Mariya figured she could easily slip under them and attack from behind. Quickly slipping her leg between's Steve's legs, she bends her body back as she steps beneath him and in one quick motion, stands behind him as she kicks him to the floor and holds him down. "Give up?"_

_Steve smiles as he gives her a thumbs up, "Now you're getting it. You've learned to think before you attack. I think you deserve a slice of pizza."  
_  
Mariya smiles to herself as she knocks the punching bag to the floor and grabs another one. For some reason, she found her training more fun than hard. Sure every once in a while she'd wake up completely sore and other times, she just thought about giving up; but maybe it's because her new friends were patient and open, it made her feel comfortable. However, there was also something that could make her smile fade quickly. She knew deep inside that all this training had been to prepare her for combat against her enemy, the Winter Soldier. It had been two years since she had seen him in the flesh, yet dreams of him plagued her whenever she slept. Some dreams involved him looking like a normal person with a kind personality, while others involved him pressing her against a wall while he tortures her unmercilessly. Mariya never understood why she constantly had dreams about this man, but one thing she knew for sure was that whenever the time would come and they would meet face to face, she would get her revenge. And this time, no one is going to end up hurt or dead. She would be sure of that. Just as she knocks the punching bag to the floor again, Fury appears in the doorway with a stack of papers in his hand.

"We've just received word that the Winter Soldier was last seen boarding a train in Chicago headed for New York. Are you ready for your first mission Agent Zolnerowich?"

At that moment, Fury swore he had never before seen a girl that looked more determined and fierce as Mariya did.

"I'll be ready in an hour."

"I'll give you thirty minutes."

_**Reviews are much appreciated :) Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**_


	5. The Showdown

The Winter Soldier sat in his seat as his eyes wandered over to every person in his sight. To his right, a little girl was playing with a rag doll while her parents were busy discussing a court hearing on their divorce; two rows across from his seat, a couple was discussing honeymoon vacations. Even if he had seen and experienced what it's like to live in the modern world for years now, he never understood the people that lived in it. For example, one night he had been sent to a bar to follow Dorian Smith, a U.S senator that had been previously connected to S.H.I.E.L.D; his mission had almost failed because a group of women had surrounded him and began to ask him idiotic questions like, "what's up handsome?" or "did you fall from heaven because you've got the look of an angel." When that happened, he had the impulse to hit every woman at the bar, but because he had a mission, he knew that attracting unwanted attention would just end in failure. Instead, he left the bar and snuck into Smith's car, awaiting his arrival. Not even an hour later, Smith's body, as well as his car, was recovered from the Potomac river and deemed as an accident or possible suicide.

As the train finally made a stop, he grabbed his bags and made his way towards the exit door. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he dialed for Von Strucker.

"I have arrived at my destination."

"Are you disguised well?"

The Winter Soldier stared down at his attire and nodded to himself: casual jeans, converse sneakers, and a black hoodie. "No one will suspect a thing. Besides I blend in with these Americans pretty well."

"Excellent. I want you to complete this mission as quickly as possible and if you even think about wandering away again, i'll have my men find you."

_The Winter Soldier could never forget the day that he had disobeyed orders from Von Stricker. After he had assassinated Mariya's parents and had an encounter with Captain America, he had decided to disguise himself in civilian clothing and visit the Smithsonian, just so he could learn more about his other main target. What he wasn't expecting that day was that he would be standing in front of a screen, watching a documentary on a man known as James Buchanan Barnes, also known as Bucky He had recalled that Mariya and Captain had called him that name, but to him, it made no sense if his true identity was an American soldier that had fought against HYDRA. For as long as he could remember, HYDRA had always been the one thing he protected and fought for. Still, he questioned his identity when he thought of the girl on the bridge. Why had she seemed so familiar? Had he failed to kill her so many times that now she was just a target he had encountered for a number of years or was she a key to discovering his true self?  
_  
Shaking his head, the Winter Soldier made his way through the busy station and into a hotel, where he prepared for his mission.

Mariya stood in front of the mirror as she zipped up her catsuit and pulled her hair into a ponytail. "God how can Natasha and Hill even breathe in this thing?"

As she headed towards the garage, Natasha and Steve appeared beside her.

"Did you really expect that you were gonna go alone on your first mission? Natasha asks.

"Since you're still a new agent, we'll need to be sure that you get the best protection there is." Steve says as he throws his shield onto his back.

Mariya smiles as she steps into the car and activates all the security programs, "I've been taught well by the two greatest agents and heroes. I'm sure I'll do just fine." However her smile falters, when she notices that Steve now has a concerned look on his face.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know if I can kill him. Bucky's always been my friend, my backbone. It's just….I want to help him first before I even think of killing him. I won't murder him."

"I'm afraid you have no choice Rogers."

Everyone whips their head around to see Fury, fully clad in his black suit, as he stands before them with all their equipment.

"Your friend Bucky is dead; the man that looks like him is a completely different person. A man that seeks to kill anyone who stands in his way."

"And how would you know that? Did you ever lose a best friend and later find out that he was captured by your enemies and brainwashed? It's one thing to give me advice but if you've never experienced it yourself, you don't know the feeling."

"If you recall, he almost killed you that day on the Hellicarrier. Do you think he's still your best friend? Last time I checked, best friends don't try to kill each other."

Steve clenches his teeth and climbs into the SUV. Before closing the door, he glares at Fury and says, "I want him captured and brought in first. Who's to say that we don't have the technology that could possibly bring back his memories?"

"What about Mariya, Rogers? Do you think she feels sympathy towards your 'friend' that killed her parents?"

Steve turns to Mariya and gives her an apologetic look, "I'm sorry. I have no right to interfere with your mission, but in case you do end up killing him, please make sure I'm not in sight."

As Steve closes his door, Mariya turns to Fury, "I don't know if I can do this. I mean, I don't want to put Steve in a position where he'll go crazy knowing that I murdered his best friend and I never gave him the chance to redeem himself."

"You are under direct orders Agent Zolnerowich and you must understand that personal feelings are not to be taken into account. Am I understood?"

Mariya nods as she climbs into the passenger seat.

"Romanoff, make sure you all come back alive."

Natasha nods as she start the car and makes her way out of headquarters. As Fury watches the car disappear out of sight, he slips off his shades and looks up towards the sky.

"Protect them at all costs."

The car ride to the location was anything but comfortable. Most of the ride involved complete awkward silence or going over the plan. While all of this is happening, Mariya is staring out the window while a million thoughts cross her mind. Was revenge really an answer? No. Will it make you feel good? Yes and no. Would her parents be proud? Maybe. How can you live with yourself if you end up killing someone's best friend? No comment.

"Once we pull into this parking garage, be sure to keep your eyes open."

Steve pulls out his cellphone and quickly calls Fury, "We've arrived at the location. No signs of HYDRA yet."

"Keep both eyes open Rogers. They're out there-"

Suddenly the connection is lost and all S.H.I.E.L.D vehicle armor is disabled.

"This can't be good…" Natasha says as she grabs one of her handguns.

Mariya places her hand against her own handgun as he eyes dart all over the place, praying that he mission would not be starting anytime soon. Then, that's when her worst nightmare comes true.

Natasha slams on the break and holds her breath as she stares at the sight ten feet away from her. Steve has a remorseful but agitated look on his face as he placed his hand on his shield, ready to whip it out at any moment. Mariya slumps in her seat and breathes heavily as she becomes overwhelmed with fear and anxiety. She loads her gun slowly but never takes her eyes off the figure.

Ten feet away from them stands the Winter Soldier, clad in his black armor, only a pair of goggles and a mask shielding his entire face. In his hand is a grenade launcher, while his metal one hold a M4Ai rifle, the same weapon that was used to kill most of his victims. Before he even makes a move, one of HYDRA's vehicles slams into their vehicle, pushing them in the Winter Soldier's direction.

"We've gotta get out of the car now!" Natasha yells as she unbuckles her seatbelt and unlocks the doors.

The next thing Mariya sees is the Winter Soldier jump onto the roof of the car and slam his arm right through it, trying to grab anyone he can.

Steve grabs Mariya's arm as he kicks open the door and quickly flies out, Mariya still in his grasp.

"Are you okay? Can you walk?"

Mariya nods and stands up rather quickly, her eyes still focused on the Soldier. "Make sure Natasha is safe."

Without a moment's hesitation, Mariya begins to run towards the Soldier, her teeth clenched in anger as she pulls out both of her handguns and begins shooting at him.

Natasha screams at Mariya to retreat but it's too late. The Winter Soldier manages to dodge all the bullets as he backflips and turns his body in ways that seem inhuman. All this time, Mariya is controlling her breathing as she dodges his attack and hides behind a vehicle, unsure of what her next move is. She notices that he's still on top of the car so the only way that she'll critically hit him would be to run up, aim and fire quickly. Looking up at the Soldier, she notices that he's completely distracted at the moment by Black Widow. Gathering her courage, she runs towards the vehicle and climbs onto it so that now she's in close range of the soldier. What she doesn't realize is that he will always be one step ahead of her. Quickly kicking both handguns out of her hands, he aims his rifle between her eyes and stares at her coldly. "You have made my mission a lot easier." In one quick motion, he grabs her by the throat and throws her body flat against the car so that now she's struggling to breathe and it seems that there's absolutely no way to escape his grasp.

In the background, Natasha is fighting her ways towards Mariya while she yells, "Hold on! I'll be right there!" Steve continues to fight the HYDRA agents, punching and using his shield to knock them all out; but all of these sounds soon begin to fade. As she stares into the Soldier's eyes, a smile creeps onto Mariya's face once she realizes a move that could prove useful at this point. With all the strength she could muster, Mariya forces her body to slide between the Soldier's leg, get up quickly, and wrap both of her legs around his neck before slamming him down onto the car and pinning him down with her body. "Didn't think the tables would turn on you huh?" The Soldier merely pushes her body off of his and throws her onto the floor as grabs his weapon, "I have had more than enough games with you. Prepare to die."

"Not today you bastard!" Mariya loads her handgun and aims at the Soldier's face before she pulls the trigger and runs towards Steve and Natasha. Deep down inside, Mariya had hoped that maybe she hit a part of his face but the only thing she managed to hit was his goggles lens. When Mariya turns back to look at him, his goggles are now off his face and his eyes burn with anger and frustration. He begins to randomly shoot all over the place while he signals for his men to cover him.

Mariya grabs both Steve and Natasha's hands, "We gotta get back to headquarters now. If we stay here any longer, we'll all be dead!"

Natasha and Steve both nod quickly and begin to run with Mariya, but all three stop in their tracks when they hear a loud, rumbling sound approaching in their direction. Just then, the parking garage is blown into bits as a large, armored machine shaped like a rhino appears. "Well well well, what do we have here? Ze Black Widow, Captain Amerika, and an amateur agent?" He laughs as he unmasks himself and looks down on all three of them, "I crush you like I crush all my enemies! You will not live to see the light of day!"

"Aleksei Systevich...last time I heard, you were held up in an undisclosed facility somewhere in Manhattan." Natasha says as she grabs her taser disks and hides them in her hand, "Since when did HYDRA becoming desperate?"

"It appears that HYDRA knows what a real secret weapon looks like! You have no chance against me, the Rhino!"

"Yeah yeah, tell it to the czar." Just before Aleksei can shield his face, Natasha throws 5 taser disks in his direction and watches as his suit malfunctions and begins to twitch uncontrollably.

The Rhino slams his armor against the floor and groans in anger as he gears up and prepares to charge at them, "Big mistake! Now it is my turn! I hope you like to get your head smashed against the pavement!" To their surprise, the Rhino begins to slowly increase his speed as he runs towards them, ready to pierce them with his horn.

Natasha turns to Mariya and looks into her eyes, "You run. Don't look back. Me and Steve will take care of him and meet up with you later."

Mariya shakes her head, tears already welling up in her eyes, "I can't abandon you two, not now! That thing will crush the both of you and I don't want anyone else dying because of me!"

Steve lets out a small laugh as he pulls Mariya into a quick hug, "We won't die, I promise. Besides, someone out there still owes me my first dance."

Without a second's thought, Steve and Natasha run towards the rhino and begin to attack him while Mariya runs out of the garage as fast as her legs can carry her.

Natasha continues to throw her taser disks and shoot at the Rhino, but nothing seems to be penetrating him. Not even Captain's shield could create a dent or slight damage when it connected with his armor.

When Rhino notices that the main target is running away, he begins to runs towards her but the Winter Soldier hisses at him, in an extremely dark tone, that he will take care of the girl.

At this point, Mariya is still near the parking garage, but not too close. Since she started running, she notices that a knife had slit her thigh and since the Soldier had choked her, breathing was starting to become difficult. She finally decides to rest behind a dumpster as she examines her cut. The slit was nothing too deep but it still stung pretty bad. "Nice going Mariya...you fucked up again and to make matters worse, you ran away from your problems like you always do…"

As she gets up, the dumpster is pushed out of the way and the Winter Soldier has her throat in his grasp once again, her body pushed up against the wall. Mariya cries out in pain as she hears the gears in his arm moving rapidly as he tightens his grip on her every second and in a hoarse voice she says, "Go on! K...Kill me! I was supposed to die...that day anyway...What's holding you back now?!"

The Soldier glares at his victim with piercing blue eyes, his hand ready to break her neck at any second; yet, something was stopping him. With a frustrated groan, he releases his grip on her throat and drops her to the ground. Mariya coughs and tries to breathe in as much air as possible, "Why..Why didn't...you k...kill me?! Y..You fucking coward! I'm your mission right? K...Kill me so this can end!"

Before she can say anything else, something hits the back of her head, sending her into a dizzy state. Just as she's about to lose consciousness, she feels her body being lifted off the ground while he leans close to her ear and says, "I'm sorry."

**_Hope you liked this chapter. Please feel free to favorite, rate, or review :) I appreciate your feedback! It's what keeps me going!_**


	6. Held Hostage by a Madman

Apologies are not statements that that should be casually said from their speaker; rather, apologies are heartfelt, sincere statements that convey the message, "I know I was a jerk to you but this is me saying that I value you so much that I'm willing to set aside my pride and mend our relationship so that we can become good friends again."

The Soldier's "I'm sorry" reverberates through Mariya's head before she is woken up by the sound of thunder. She holds her head and groans as she slowly makes her way out of bed, but before she can even walk towards the window, she feels something cold and metal wrapped around her ankle. Looking down, she begins to panic when she sees that she was a foot cuff wrapped around her left ankle.

"What the hell?"

Mariya reaches in her backpocket, happy that she always carried her pocket knife with her; but she's shocked when she notices that someone changed her out of her catsuit, which meant that all of her weapons and communication/tracking devices were gone. A flash of lightning lights up the dark room and Mariya nearly falls over when she notices a dark figure sitting in the corner, watching her intently. Even in the dimly lit room, Mariya can see the figure is still wearing his mask but his goggles are off now revealing his piercing blue eyes, the same eyes that had haunted her since the incident two years ago. Mariya glares back at him and quickly grabs a lamp from the bedside table, slams it against the wall, and points it at him, "Where am I? What have you done with Captain and Black Widow?!"

No response.

"They'll find me you know? In case you didn't know, I had tracking devices on my phone and suit so they're probably just waiting for the right time to attack this place. I swear, once they capture you and take you back to headquarters, I'll make sure that you'll never be seen in public again!"

That's when the Soldier stands up and walks over to her, reaching for something in his back pocket. Thinking that he'll kill her, Mariya hits his torso with the lamp, desperately hoping that the broken glass would've wounded him; unfortunately for her, the Soldier merely stares at his stomach before his bionic hand strikes Mariya across the face, sending her flying to the wall. Mariya lets out a cry of pain as she touches the band of her head and feels something drip onto her fingers. Blood.

"What the hell was that for you psycho?!"

The Soldier continues to stare at her as his bionic arm twitches in anger, still refusing to speak to the hotheaded, stubborn girl. Instead of striking her again, he throws down the now broken communication device in front of her.

Mariya's eyes widen when she realizes the broken device in front of her was the communication device Fury had given her just this morning. "H..How did you-?"

"Your suit and weapons were thrown into the river. At this point, everyone thinks you drowned in the Potomac."

Mariya clenches her broken device in anger before she throws it across the room and lets out a loud, pained scream. A couple seconds later, the occupants next door are banging the wall shouting, "Shut up will you?! Some of us are trying to sleep!" Mariya quickly covers her mouth and looks at the Winter Soldier, who nods in response. She wasn't in a secret hideout. She was in an actual hotel room, surrounded by other civilians.

The Soldier returns to his seat as he finally takes off his mask and runs his hand across his stubbly face, "I must run some errands before we must move to a different location. Are you hungry?"

Mariya scoffs as she crosses her arms across her chest and goes back to the bed, "Okay first, what makes you think I'm going anywhere with you?! You're an abusive psychopath that constantly tries to strangle me to death! And to answer your second question, no, I'm not hungry." A couple seconds later, a rumbling sound is heard coming from Mariya's stomach, "Damn you."

The Soldier holds back a smirk as he begins to change out of his armor and into his civilian clothes. The whole time he's changing, Mariya is trying to control herself from watching him; but she can't help but notice how toned and muscular his body his upper body is and how well build he is down THERE.

She's brought back to reality when she sees him giving her a concerned look, "I'll be back in fifteen minutes or less. While I'm gone, please refrain from breaking anything or I may have to resort to something drastic and I highly doubt you'd want to see an even more violent side of me."

Mariya shakes her head, "I'll be good. Don't worry!"

The Soldier looks at her one more time before he exits the room. Once Mariya hears the door click, she hops out of bed and begins searching for something that could possibly unlock the foot cuff. "Come on, think Mariya...would he leave a key? Even if he had a key, he wouldn't just leave in plain sight. What else could work as a damn key?!" That's when she remembers the bobby pin that she always kept in her hair in case of an emergency situation like this one or just when she needed to pin her sidebang. As she fashions the bed into a "key," she bends over and begins to play with the lock. Within a couple of minutes, she hears a little click sound and watches as the foot cuff falls off of her ankle. "Bingo!" Mariya smiles to herself, clearly proud of her simple accomplishment, but quickly realizes that she needs to get out of the hotel room ASAP. When she opens the door, she pokes her head out of the' doorway and looks to the left and right. "Good. The hallway is completely empty." She quietly closes the door behind her and makes her way to the elevator, pushing the button aggressively, "Okay Mariya, you can do this...don't panic. He's probably still in the store...For now, just focus on making your way back to SHIELD headquarters."

When the elevator doors finally open, she quickly walks in and makes her way down to the lobby, a rush of adrenaline spreading throughout her entire body, "I...I made it! I swear that if I make it back to SHIELD safely, I'll do more training so this won't happen ever again. I'll even change my look so that next time I come face to face with him, he won't even recognize me!" When the elevator finally reaches the ground floor, Mariya quickly slips across the lobby, a curtain of hair covering her face. When she finally manages to slip outside, she breathes a sigh of relief and smiles to herself, "Time to go home!"

Just as she's about to turn the corner however, something catches her eye that makes her heart stop. Surrounded by large crowds of people stands the Winter Soldier, staring at her intently with a shocked expression on his face.

Mariya shakes her head as she steps back and begins to run through the busy street. trying her best not to push or tackle people to the ground, "He said he'd be back in fifteen minutes. There's no way that was him!"

When she turns around again, she sees the Soldier pushing through the large crowds of people, a taser in his hand as his eyes continue to watch Mariya. He was definitely catching up to her.

At that moment, Mariya notices a police officer at the corner of the street so she begins to run a little faster before she finally manages to grab his body and use it as a shield.

"What the hell is going on here?! Lady this is a violation of-"

"Officer, I need your help! There's a man that's trying to kill me and he's coming our way."

When the Soldier notices Mariya hiding behind an officer, he slips the taser back in his pocket and calmy approaches both of them.

"That's him officer! He's the man that wants to kill me!"

The officer eyes the Winter Soldier suspiciously, "Is this true?"

The Soldier takes a deep breath and lets out a deep sigh as he takes out a picture of Mariya from his wallet and shows it to him. "This woman is my fiance. Unfortunately, she suffers from short term memory loss so there are times when she causes a scene and claims I'm trying to murder her. I can assure you, we are both staying at the Roosevelt hotel down Fifth."

"Fiance?!"

"See what I mean."

The officer looks back at Mariya and steps aside, allowing the Soldier to grab Mariya by the wrist firmly.

"Have a good night you two! And be sure to keep a good grip on your woman!"

The Soldier nods at the officer and tugs on Mariya's wrist, "Come on sweetie, we need to go back to the hotel now."

Mariya stares in disbelief as she's dragged away from the one person, that could've possibly rescued her, and back into the hotel lobby. As they both make their way inside the elevator, the Soldier pushes Mariya against the elevator railing and glares at her while he holds his bionic arm, clearly trying his best not to strike her again.

"Why don't you just hit me?"

"A part of me does not wish to harm you."

"Oh please. Don't give me this bullshit. You've strangled and struck me before so what's stopping you now?! Are you afraid because I almost escaped and got you into trouble?! Why don't you just kill me now? Drug me! Cut me open! Drown me in the tub for all I care, but just kill me so you can go back to wherever the hell you came from and never have to worry about seeing me again!

"Will you shut up?!" The Soldier growls as he hits his metal arm against the elevator, creating a dent.

Maria slumps against the elevator railing and mumbles, "Hothead."

When the doors finally open, the Soldier throws Mariya over his shoulder as he makes his way to the room and quickly opens the door.

He sets the bags down and throws Mariya onto the bed before he proceeds to lock all the windows and doors in the room. "I understand you wants to escape but you're not safe out in the open. HYDRA believes I killed you by drowning you in the river; as of right now, they expect that you're dead!"

Mariya sits up and pulls her knees to her chest, "I just don't understand why you can't kill me? Since I won't try to escape or pull some crazy stunt, could you please just tell me if Captain and Black Widow are safe?.

The Soldier nods, "Aleksei was ordered to merely distract them while I pursued you. As of right now, the both of them are probably back at SHIELD's headquarters."

"Captain still thinks you're innocent you know?"

"I don't know why that damn fool messes with my mind so much. He's becoming a bigger problem than you are. I'll need to kill him before I return to Russia."

"He's your best friend!"

"I have no friends! All this nonsense you throw at me is just so I can fail to complete yet another mission. I will not have any more of your lies!"

Mariya stares at him in disbelief before she throws her hands in the air, "You're impossible! If you think we're coming up with bullshit lies, what about HYDRA? Do you think they tell you the entire truth about who you are?"

"You know nothing so I suggest you shut up before I knock you unconscious again."

Mariya rolls her eyes and lays on the bed, now completely silent.

"Do you know why I can't kill you?"

"No...that's what I keep asking you."

"It's because I have dreams about you." He says as he throws a sandwich at her, "I've had dreams that bring me comfort and peace but also pain and anger."

Mariya freezes when she realizes what he just said, "You have those type of dreams too?"

The Soldier nods as he takes out all of his supplies from the grocery bag and lays them out on the table, "I feel the need to protect you but strangle you at the same time. You're like an angel but a demon at the same time. This is why I can never complete my mission. A part of me is holding me back and this has never happened before. As cruel as it may sound, killing another human being is just like squishing a worthless insect."

"So by you sparing me...is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"I don't know. It was just something I wanted to reveal to you."

Mariya unwraps her sandwich and takes a bite out of it, "I've had dreams about you too. Sometimes I see a different side of you that's loving and kind, but then I also see the killer that wishes to inflict as much pain and suffering on me as possible. I don't understand."

"Do you know why I killed your parents?"

Mariya's eyes turn cold as she turns to him and shakes her head.

"Your parents were the ones who made me this way. They created the damn machine that took away all the memories of my past self and replaced it with anger, confusion, and hatred. I knew they had a daughter; they made that no secret to me. So I vowed that one day, I would make their daughter experience all the pain I suffered over the years because of them. Those cowards. They even abandoned HYDRA years later because they realized everything they had done. And of course, they wanted their precious child to live a normal life, free from a Nazi based agency that wished to bring peace but also pain and fear to mankind."

Mariya bites down on her fist as she glares at the Soldier, "My parents were not cowards. They would never hurt anyone! You're mistaken!"

The Soldier stares back at her, "Mariya Zolnerowich, age 17, born August 13, 1996 in Moscow, Russia to Dmitri and Zoe Zolnerowich, now deceased, ex agents of HYDRA."

"How do you know me so well?" Mariya asks in disbelief.

At that moment, the Soldier falls to his knees and lets out a frustrated groan as a "forgotten" memory clouds his mind.

_He is sitting in the lab chair, exhausted after completing his first mission. Zoe and Dmitri Zolnerowich are in the other room, conversing with Armin Zola, while their 5 year old daughter is happily spinning around the room._

_When her bright green eyes notice the Soldier, she pushes the door open and slowly makes her way towards him, holding her bear close to her. "Hi!"_

_The Soldier looks at her and rolls his eyes as he leans back in his chair and breathes heavily._

_The young girl frowns as she steps on his shoes and pushes herself into his lap so that now she knows she can hear him, "HI!"_

_The Soldier groans and looks at the girl, now smiling back at him._

_"__Why are you a sewious person?"_

_"__Why are you an annoying little brat?"_

_"__I'm cute, not annoying. What happened to you arm?"_

_"__My real arm fell off so the doctors made me an even stronger arm so I could still live like a normal person."_

_"__Wowww! You're like the Terminator then!"_

_"__What?"_

_The girl giggles as she hugs the bear close to her body, "This is Bucky, my bear! He likes warm hugs! Hug him!"_

_The Winter Soldier awkwardly holds up the bear and gives it a quick squeeze before returning it to the girl."_

_"__You know what you look like? You look like a gwumpy cat!"_

_"__That's not very nice kid."_

_The girl smiles again, "No, gwumpy kitties are cute! Do you like kitties?"_

_At this point, the Winter Soldier gives the girl a small smile and nods, "I do. You kinda remind me of a cat."_

_"__Really?! That means I'm adowable and cuddly!"_

_"__That's right."_

_"__What be your name Mister?"_

_The Soldier gives her a solemn look and shakes his head, "I don't have one. I'm just known as the Winter Soldier."_

_The girl stares at him and at her bear before her eyes light up with excitement, "If you wore a mask, you'd look exactly like my bear Bucky! I think I'll call you Bucky from now on!"_

_The Soldier smiles at her and ruffles her hair, "Bucky huh? I like it. What is your name little rotyonok?"_

_"__Mawiya! Mawiya Zolnerowich. I'm only 5 years old! And what did you call me?"_

_"__Rotyonok is the Russian word for kitten. I'll call you that since you remind me of an annoying cat."_

_"__Hey that's not very nice Bucky!"_

_Finally the doors slide open and both of Mariya's parents enter the room, "Mariya! Go to the play room now!"_

_Mariya sighs and hops off the Soldier's lap as she runs to her parents and gives the a quick hug. Before she leaves, she smiles and waves at the Soldier, "Bye Bye Bucky! See ya next time!"_

_The Soldier nods and glares at the Zolnerowich's as they force the machine to strap him to the chair, while one of their assistants slips a disk in his mouth to prevent him from screaming so loudly while he endures the pain. Before the Zolnerowich's push the button, the Soldier closes his eyes and mumbles, "We will meet again soon Mariya."  
_  
"Are you okay?! Do you need water or maybe a pillow or something?! Please tell me you're still alive!"

The Soldier's eyes shoot wide open as he grabs Mariya by the throat and pins her to the floor.

"S..Stop! I..It's me...Mariya!"

The Soldier releases his grasp and scoots his body to the corner as he watches Mariya choke and massage her throat.

"What the hell was that for?!"

"I had...a flashback."

Mariya's eyes widen in surprise, "What did you remember?"

The Soldier crawls back to Mariya and wraps his arms around her waist as he lays his head on her lap and takes deep, slow breaths. "I told you we would meet again Mariya."

"Wait what? What are you talking about?"

"You've grown up my little_ rotyonok_, I'm never letting you leave my sight ever again."

"W..What did you call me?"

The Soldier looks up at her, but this time, with confused eyes, "Mariya. It's me. Bucky. Don't you remember?"

_**Please feel free to leave feedback, comment, favorite, or follow :) To everyone that continues to read this fic/comment on it, just know that i greatly appreciate each and every one of you and I'm so happy that you're interested in reading my simple story. I'll be sure to update again soon. I love you all! :D**_


	7. Gambling with the Devil

Fury takes a deep breath and clutches his cane tightly, trying to control himself as much as he can, "I thought I ordered the both of you to keep a close eye on Mariya and make sure she made it back to headquarters in one piece, yet I've just been informed by her tracker device that she's at the bottom of the Potomac…?" Fury slams his cane against the desk, startling both Natasha and Steve, "You two better have a damn good explanation!"

Natasha is the first to step forward and speak, "We expected the Winter Soldier and three backup vans at the most; what we ended up going against was the Winter Soldier, his backup, and escaped convict Alexei Systevich."

"So you're telling me, you couldn't take down an escaped convict, a group of poorly trained Hydra agents, and the Soldier? Yet, the two of you managed to take down an intergalactic army...I'm not following on why this mission was a complete failure Agent Romanoff."

Now it's Steve time to step forward, his eyes completely locked on Fury's one eye, "Our intention was not to jeopardize Mariya's life and get her captured by the Soldier. When Natasha and I were faced again Systevich, we realized too late that he was built inside a steel power suit that increased his powers levels triple than what we face on a regular basis. We knew that it would take all our strength to go against him so we ordered Mariya to run and hide in a secure location and once we had Systevich in our hands, we would locate her with our tracking devices and bring her back to headquarters. By the time Natasha and I realized we needed to retreat from the area, our tracker devices informed us that Mariya was in the Potomac."

Staring at both of their faces, Fury knew deep down that these two were not to blame for the capture and subsequent death of a fellow agent. Natasha was biting her lip in complete frustration while Rogers was looking down at the floor, a frustrated expression clearly displayed on his face.

"If only we had been stronger and kept a closer eye on her, she would've never fallen into the hands of the Soldier." Natasha says as she balls her hands up in fists and her entire body begins to shake, "If only we hadn't been so careless, we would've had the Soldier in custody at this point and we'd probably be celebrating our victory at the local shawarma joint."

Steve grips Natasha's shoulder and gives it a comforting squeeze, "Don't blame yourself Natasha, it wasn't your fau-."

"I promise I'll hunt down the Soldier and kill him for everything he's done. He's already caused so many problems for us." She turns to Steve and gives him a stern look, "When that time comes, I don't want you to stop me Rogers. This man isn't your best friend." With that said, she walks out of the conference room, hurt and anger written all over her features.

Fury rubs his temples and takes a deep breath before waving his hand towards Steve nonchalantly, "You are dismissed Rogers. I will inform you when I'd like to see you and Agent Romanoff again. In the meantime, work on your fighting skills...and rest in your room. The good Lord knows you and Agent Romanoff look like you've gone through hell and back."

Steve laughs a little at his remark and nods in understanding, "Understood Sir." He places his shield on his back and walks out the room, now leaving only Agent Hill and Fury alone.

"You don't think she's dead do you?" Agent Hill asks casually.

Fury looks up at her with a stern expression on his face, "Not. One. Bit. I want you to stay in the surveillance room and program all computer screens to capture every camera in this city!"

Complete utter silence. Mariya had never been so confused in her entire life until now. This monster, no this man, standing in front of her looks so lost and confused that she can't help but think that maybe he really is telling the truth. "Look, I really don't know you. Hell, I've never known you in my life! I really do think you have me mistaken for someone else!"

The Winter Soldier pushes her onto the bed and climbs on top her body, proving how easily he can pin her down and trap her. "I know you know me," he says, his face now just inches from hers, "I finally found you…" He presses his cold, steel hand against her cheek and caresses it gently, "You visited me whenever I returned from my missions. I taught you how to fight and defend yourself, I even taught you how to use a gun properly." After that statement, his eyes grow cold and dark again and he grabs a fistful of Mariya's hair, pulling her face closer to his so that now she could practically smell his musky scent, "Do not forget that I created you you ungrateful brat!"

Without thinking, Mariya end's up kneeing him in the crotch while using her feet to push him off of her. "Stay the fuck away from me you damn psycho! Look, I know that you've got a grudge against someone that clearly resembles me but I'm not her! If you'd like, I can drop you off at the nearest psychiatric facility and I won't report you to the police! Or you could just let me go now and then you can go back to Hydra's headquarters and we won't ever have to worry about bumping into each other ever again!"

The Soldier lets out a cold laugh as he stands up and grabs a handful of her again, dragging hr across the room and into the tiny bathroom. Before Mariya can even put her fists up to defend herself, her head is forced into the toilet bowl for about thirty seconds. The Soldier stares at her helpless body thrashing all over the place as she's forced to endure the torture of swallowing toilet water and not being able to breathe; after the thirty seconds are finished, he pulls her head back up, allowing her to breathe, but the poor girl ends up coughing and trying to catch her breath while trying not to vomit all over the place. The Soldier grabs a towel from the rack and throws it at her and moves to the doorway, watching her with an expression of utter disgust on his face, "If you even think about trying to escape or attacking me again, i'll slit your damn throat!"

Mariya flinches at the anger in his voice and nods quickly, "I get it you bastard! I won't pull a stunt like that again!" She rubs the towel all over her face and hair but groans when she sniffs a strand of her hair, "Thanks, I've always wanted to smell like a damn toilet!" She throws the towel at him crosses her arms over her chest, not leaving her position on the floor.

The Soldier walks over to the bed and grabs one of the grocery bags, throwing it to her, "We will be leaving this place at exactly 21:30. Inside the bag you'll find hair dye, personal hygiene products, and a pair of clothes. You can dye your hair first and then shower, I really dont care; but once you are finished, you will assist me. Understood?"

Mariya glares at the Soldier and nods, "I got it." She pulls the contents out of the bag and notices that he was right. Inside the bag was a toothbrush, a small tube of toothpaste, a small case of deodorant, a small bottle of shampoo and conditioner, a box of jet black hair dye, a pair of dark blue jeans, a grey tank top, and a small leather jacket to complete the look. "Wow. Did you pick out all of these yourself?" Mariya asks, raising the pair of jeans up to her face. The Soldier walks over to the tv set and begins to flip through the channels, completely ignoring her question.

"If you're not doing something in the next twenty seconds, I will personally come in there

and scrub you down myself...and I can already tell you, it will not be a pleasant experience."

Mariya scoffs at his comment and begins to open up the box of hair dye, "Geez I'm gonna start now! Clearly Hydra doesn't teach their agents manners!" That said, she slams and locks the door, leaving only the Soldier on the bed. As his eyes glance towards the door, a smirk forms up on his lips, "You haven't changed a bit kotyonok."

Mariya stares at the bottle of hair dye in front of her and then back at her hair. It wasn't until this point in time that Mariya realized she had always been content with her natural auburn hair; in fact, she considered it one of her greatest assets. But now, her red locks would be tarnished by the plain color of jet black. "Damn him and his stupid orders!" She shakes the bottle one last time and divides her hair into sections as she pours a handful of dye into the palm of her hands and begins spread out evenly all over her head. Twenty minutes later, her entire head was covered in the black dye and she could already say that black was definitely her least favorite hair color. The black not only made her fair skin appear pasty, it also accentuated her bright green eyes and there was nothing more that Mariya hated than eye contact with people. She decides to sit on the toilet and relax for a bit while the dye did it's magic for another twenty five minutes.

Now that the entire room was silent, Mariya's thoughts wandered back to the incident the Winter Soldier just had forty minutes ago. "How does he know me yet I don't know him? I know it's a fact that at least three people in this world look lke me...so maybe it really is just a big mistake! But then again, he did mention my name and there can't possibly be three women in the world that have the same name as me…Oh god, this is definitely killing me." She places her face in her hands and lets out a deep groan, "Kotyonok...kitten in Russian. Why does that sound so familiar? I think Papa called me that when I was little but still…" Shaking those thoughts away, Mariya strips all the clothing off of herself and steps into the shower, utterly thankful that she had the privilege of washing away all the sweat and dirt that had built up on her body hours ago. Once she manages to rinse all the dye away and wash all the filth off her body, she quickly dries herself off and examines her body in the mirror. Her neck was red and a slight tint of purplish green from when the soldier had choked her numerous times and there was a small cut right above her right eyebrow. "I'm damaged goods now." However, her frown turns into a smile when she notices how nice and toned her body is, a body that would make any girl jealous. Mariya had to admit, she wasn't stick skinny like the other agents she had seen but she wasn't fat either; she had meat in all the right places and it made it her proud to think that she wasn't the type to overexercise or starve herself just to achieve a hot body. All the training she had done in two years definitely paid off.

Once she puts on her new clothes and dries her hair one last time, she quietly opens the door and tiptoes out of the bathroom, walking over to the bed, "Hey the bathroom is-"

Laying on the bed with his arm carelessly dangling off the side of the bed was the same man that had almost killed her multiple times now. Even from the bathroom, Mariya knew he was breathing but she had never imagined that even a highly trained killer would need sleep. "So you are human after all." Studying his face at a closer view, Mariya had to admit that the Winter Soldier was definitely a very attractive man. He had a nice fair complexion, thin lips that definitely made any woman wanna kiss them, and long dark lashes that you could only notice when his eyes were closed; but then there was the fact that his hair looked as if it hadn't been washed in months and his body odor was extremely musky that it would make any individual cringe. Just when she's about to brush a strand of hair away from her face, his eyes shoot open and his hand grabs her wrist, startling her instantly, "You have finished?"

"Yeah...the bathroom is all yours."

He releases his grip on her wrist and pushes her to the side when he finally gets up, "Do not ever try to sneak up on me again or else you'll end up with a broken wrist. Follow me to the bathroom."

"Look I don't know if I should really-Hey let me go!"

The Soldier holds a firm grip on drags her to the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind him. "Are you familiar with shaving and giving someone a shower?"

"Yeah but I've never done it on another person."

The Soldier hands her a bottle of shaving cream and a razor, "There's a first time for everything. You may start." He sits on the toilet and moves his face close to her body so that she's guaranteed easy access.

"Why can't you do this yourself? Has Hydra never taught its agents how to do even the most basic of tasks?"

The Soldier glares at Mariya and pulls her body close to him so that now her stomach is pressed against his arm, "You're really getting on my nerves right now…" Mariya's eyes grow wide when she feels something cold and sharp pressed against her thigh. "You will follow my orders with question, am I understood?"

Mariya nods quickly and watches as he puts the dagger back in its sheath. "Start now."

Mariya tries to control her breathing as she brings him over to the tub and begins to wet his face, squirt a decent amount of shaving cream in her hands and start to lather his entire face. God, he looked even scarier with shaving cream on. His eyes were so dark and serious that it made him look like he was a damn terminator.

"Okay, I'm gonna move the razor across your face now."

He nods in response and watches with fixed eyes as Mariya slowly presses the blade against his chin and slowly starts moving it. "Make sure my facial hair is completely gone."

"Would you mind doing me a favor?"

"What is it?"

"Could you not stare at me while I do this to you? I mean, it's already nerve wrecking that I'm doing this but your eyes are just so vacant that I can't predict what you'll do in the next minute or two."

The Soldier sighs and closes his eyes completely, "Can you continue now?"

Mariya smiles and holds his face, "Thank you. Now I just need to work on the middle and then we'll be almost finished." Five minutes pass and just when she's about to finish the lower right area of his face, the razor ends up piercing his skin and a trickle of blood begins to flow down his face. "Shit! I..I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do that, it's just I-"

Mariya's eyes close when she feels the Soldier grab her wrist, half expecting that she was gonna be thrown against the mirror or wall, but instead she feels her hand against his face while his blood begins to get on her hands. The Soldier stands up and examines his face in the mirror, actually impressed and satisfied with what she did, "You have done well."

Mariya fakes a smile and pulls her hand away from his face, now disgusted that his blood is all over her hand, "So I'll just wait for you in the living room?"

The Soldier shakes his head and grabs her hand, bringing it his lips and giving it a nice long lick before cringing and pushing it away, "I need you to hose me down now."

"Is that how you shower?"

He nods and proceeds to take off his clothes.

Mariya looks away quickly and rushes over to the tub, "This is where you take a shower. I'll just turn it on for you then you can wash yourself up ok?"

The Soldier is now completely naked and standing in front of Mariya, not at all ashamed that he's completely nude and indecent, "Is it ready?"

Mariya turns around and controls herself from drooling when she comes in close contact with his perfect toned body, "Y..Yeah..I'll be on the bed if you need me!" She quickly rushes out of the bathroom and closes the door behind her, her heart beating faster than it ever has before.

She walks over to the bed and pulls the covers over her head, trying her best to get the Soldier's body out of her head, "For fuck's sake, it's not like you've never seen a guy naked before!" She grabs the remote from the stand and flips it on to the food network. "Paula Deen's buttermilk pancakes...that sounds really good right now." She snuggles her head deep against the pillows and closes her eyes for a minute, enjoying the coolness of the room as well as the silence; a few minutes later, she's fast asleep.

Twenty minutes later, Mariya is awoken by the sound of the air conditioner turning off and she's shocked to see the Soldier standing in the bathroom doorway, watching her.

"How long have you been standing there?"

"Fifteen minutes now."

Mariya's face turns a bright shade of red as she gets up from the bed and begins to pack her things, "It's rude to watch people when they're asleep."

"But you looked so defenseless and peaceful, I thought maybe you had died."

Mariya fake laughs then glares at him, "The only person that's gonna kill me is you so you don't have to worry about that."

"Why are you afraid to look at me sometimes?"

"I'm not afraid, I'm just uncomfortable most of the time. Eye contact with people makes me a bit angsty."

"But we know each other, it shouldn't be that uncomfortable."

"Whoa there okay? I know nothing about you. It's all one sided! You know all about me but I don't know anything about you except your codename, the Winter Soldier. That's it."

"That is why I want to find my case files. I want to know who I truly am, why I'm connected to that man on the bridge. I need to know and I want to know how you're connected to me."

"Are you sure you're not just in a delusional state? I mean HYDRA has wiped away your memories for so long that maybe you're just making this stuff up."

The Soldier's lips curl into a small smile, "I could never forget you. You were always on my mind."

Mariya turns an even darker shade of red and throws a pair of jeans at him, "Get dressed, it's almost 21:30."

The Soldier finishes getting dressed and walks over to Mariya, startling her by wrapping his arms around her body and burying his nose in her hair, "I could never forget you because I made a vow…" he says as he brushes a strand of hair away from her face and leans close to her ear, "I promised myself that I would hunt you down and make sure you'd be by my side once again and this time, you would never leave my sight. And I swear, there is nothing in this world that can erase my memories of you because I've controlled myself to never allow those monsters to take away the one thing that was always precious to me."

Mariya's eyes widen and she turns to him, "Would you happen to be bipolar?"

"...What?"

"It's just you can go from hitting me against the wall to proclaiming your long lost love for me in a minute. Am I talking to the same person or do you have a multiple personality disorder?"

He brings her face close to hers so that their lips are only inches apart and their eyes are completely locked on each other, "I am still the Winter Soldier. I've always been the Winter Soldier. There is no one else inside me."

Mariya can feel goosebumps overtake her entire body as she continues to stare into this man's eyes. There was something that definitely made her have a weak spot for him. Was it the hunger or lust in his eyes that made her weak or was it the fact that this man was just a tool used by corrupt men and deep down inside he was really just a lost and confused individual?

Mariya finally manages to look away but the Soldier grabs her chin and forces her to look back at him, "You seem to forget the most important rule when faced against an opponent."

Mariya furrows her brows in confusion and watches the Soldier move away from her body, "Never appear weak even when faced against an attractive opponent. That is the utimate sign of weakness." He then proceeds to walk back to the bathroom and closes the door, leaving Mariya angry, frustrated and confused.

"Damn bastard! Toying with my feelings like I'm a little kid!: She lays on her side and curls up in a ball, trying her best to feel comfortable, "Maybe I really do know him? I've never seen him show his soft side to anyone else but then again, what if this is all part of his game? Geez why do things have to be so damn compl-" That's when a thought crosses her mind.

She opens the bathroom door and stands in front of Bucky, grinning ear to ear, "You wanna know about your true identity right?"

Bucky glares at her suspiciously, "Yes that is why we are leaving for Russian in one hour...but why are you unusually eager to help me now?"

"If my father truly worked for Hydra, then that would've meant he could possibly have your files stored in his computer back at my house. I highly doubt he would've dropped his connections with HYDRA so quickly. Besides, HYDRA's headquarters are based in Russia so if we were to stay as far away from Russia as possible, you wouldn't run a risk of them seeing you and capturing you."

"What made you so interested to help me now though?"

Mariya was completely speechless for a second. The Soldier did have a point, what made her so willing to help him all of a sudden when she had been against the idea since she was captured? Why would she be willing to help the monster that had caused her life to become nothing but misery and hardship? Maybe it was because deep down, she also knew that she was doing this for her own benefit as well. "M...Maybe I really do know you, in a past life or something like that. Truth be told, I want to discover who I really am as well."

The Soldier stares at Mariya for long and hard, resulting in Mariya looking away because her face was back to being a light shade of red.

"And where is this hours of yours?" He asks.

"Los Angeles, California."

He walks out of the bathroom and shoves his carry on bag in her hands, "We pack immediately. We'll be out of this place in five minutes."

_**How are you guys liking the story? I know some of you are probably questioning as to why the Rhino (Alexei Systevich) is in this story when he doesn't even relate to Captain America. My whole view on Systevich is that he has always had ties to Hydra; to Hydra, Systevich is the second best project, after the Winter Soldier of course, so he'll definitely be playing a major role in this story as one of the main villains. I know that it may not be accurate with the Captain America: Winter Soldier movie, but trust me when I say that I'm mixing up elements to make this story a lot more interesting! As for future plans, what do you think of including the rest of the Avengers in the story? Bruce Banner and Tony Stark will definitely have the major parts, next to Steve and Natasha, so it's just a thought right now. As always a big thank you for all my readers! Just a big personal thank you to celticank and 4ever for continuing to post reviews and positive comments on my stories! Just wanted you to know that it really does continue to motivate me to write more chapters and expand on the plot! Please feel free to rate, review, favorite, or follow this story and I hope that you'll all stick by me as I continue to write You Are My Mission.**_

_**P.S. Expect another chapter by tomorrow! :)**_


	8. Risky Traveling

The ride to the airport was quiet and fast paced. As soon as all their things were packed into the taxi and they took their seats inside, the ride to the airport seemed endless. The city lights danced across the taxi's windows while Mariya tried to take in the sights, possibly the last sights she'd ever see. She thought about what it would've been like if she had never told her parents to take her to the DC exhibit, if they had never decided to merge onto the freeway that would later lead them to their deaths. Would death would have found them anyway or was she just one of the many causes that led her and her family to their downfall. As the car makes a stop at the light, her focus turns to a happy family waiting at the bus stop; each family member had an expression of joy and happiness on their face while the lights of the city glowed all around them, almost as if they were the center of attention at that given time. To Mariya, she still didn't understand why the world around her seemed to go on carefree and happy while she alone suffered so much tragedy and heartbreak. Deep in her heart, she knew that she would never be the focus of attention, she was just part of one of the billions of individuals in the universe, but was it too much to ask to just let the world suffer a little too? Unbeknownst to her, The Soldier, currently seated next to her, was observing her from the corner of his eye. He didn't care about the little nuisance, in fact, if he hadn't been so determined to find out his true self, he would've killed her the same day he assassinated her parents. No...he wouldn't have done that at all. Even if it was against his code to never love or care for someone, he still had a deep desire to the protect the girl sitting beside him. But why? Hydra had taught him that the world was just a dumb, corrupt society begging to be saved by them. Each living individual, besides the members of Hydra of course, were nothing more than breathing vermin. The Soldier did not know compassion, love, remorse, or sorrow; if he was told to shoot an elderly man in front of his wife and grandchildren, he pulled the trigger without a second thought; there was only one instance in which a sharp pang ran across his chest and that was the day after he had assassinated Howard and Maria Stark. Hydra had him locked up in a cell, the tv set to an American channel, and that was when a young Tony Stark appeared in front of the cameras, his eyes focused intently on the camera, while he gripped a framed portrait of his parents, "My parents did not die in vain. My father's legacy will continue to go on through me and I can guarantee that I will avenge their death, even if it kills me in the process!" Then the screen cuts to black and the Soldier is left in complete silence, the only thing that seemed most familiar to him.

The cab driver pulls up to the drop off area of the airport and turns his head to face the back seat, "That'll be $52.78."

The Soldier digs into his pocket and pulls out a one hundred dollar bill, "Keep the change."

The cab driver smiles widely and shoves the bill in his pocket, "Thank you Sir! You've made my night! Here, let me help you load the bag onto the luggage carrier!" He quickly runs over to the trunk and hurriedly stuffs the bags onto the cart, "In case you're ever in the area, feel free to call me again!"

Mariya stands next to the luggage cart, her eyes focused on the ground, as the Soldier pinches her arm a little and signals her to start moving. At this time, the airport is almost empty. All the fast food restaurants are still closed and the only sign of life on the airport was the constant announcing of flights that were scheduled to leave within 5-10 minutes. The Soldier directs his head to the front desk and pushes Mariya in the direction, "Order us two tickets for the next available flight to Los Angeles. Make sure it's a non-stop flight too." He hands her a credit card with her name on it and moves to the corner, his eyes focused on her intently as she makes her way to the front desk.

The woman at the counter flashes her a smile, "Hello, what can I do for you today?"

Mariya swallows hard and studies the large screen behind the woman, her eyes hunting for the next available flight to Los Angeles, "Are there two seats available for the next non-stop flight to Los Angeles?"

The woman begins to brush her fingers over the keyboard before nodding and printing out the information, "Our next non-stop flight to Los Angeles leaves in twenty minutes. You would be arriving at the LAX at approximately 11:30 a.m."

Mariya nods and hands the woman her credit card, "I'd like to purchase two tickets for that flight." "Excellent!," the woman says as she swipes the credit card, "May I see a form of Id?"

"P...Pardon?"

The woman looks up at Mariya, "An identification card ma'am? It's our policy that we see identification when you use a credit card."

"Oh I'm sorry I left it-" Just then Mariya feels a strong hand grip her shoulder, "Sweetie, you forgot your id in your luggage!" He lets out a deep laugh and hands the woman the card, "Sorry about that, my fiance is just excited to go to our honeymoon destination.

"F..Fiance? Honeymoon?!"

The woman behind the counter flashes a warm smile and hands back the card, "Congratulations you two! Let the flight attendant know and she'll throw in a free bottle of champagne, courtesy of the airline."

The Soldier smiles at her and thanks her before grabbing their two tickets and then turning his attention back to Mariya, "Let's get going. We need to get on that plane immediately."

Mariya scoffs and pushes the luggage cart, "Are you kidding me? We've got 15 minutes or so. We can take our time."

"Have you forgotten that we must pass through security still and I have a slight problem with that."

"Right...i'll follow you."

They make their way up the elevator and into the security checkpoint, Mariya quickly passing through while the Soldier was given suspicious glares from the security guards.

"Sir please take off the jacket and allow us to inspect your arm.

The Soldier mumbles something under his breath but quickly obeys the command and allows them to inspect his arm.

"Veteran I assume?"

"Correct."

"So sorry about the arm...wait a minute.." The security guard notices the red Soviet star on his arm, causing the Soldier to slowly tense up and ready to attack the guard at any moment. "That's a pretty cool tattoo you got there. Anyways, have a safe flight."

The Soldier nods and follows Mariya to their waiting area. The waiting area had a fairly large group of people sitting down, most of them asleep, so the Soldier and Mariya decided to sit in the farthest corner, both silent once again and lost in their own deep thoughts. Mariya clears her throat and finally turns her face to him, "I've been thinking...maybe after we find out who you are, we could take you to a doctor and they could remove the tracking devices from you arm."

"That would result in automatic death. There are wires specifically hooked up to my heart and the sensors will alert my doctors back in Russia, if suspicious activity is involved."

"But why would Hydra kill their secret weapon?"

"There are more like me, not as skilled or attentive, but they can be trained like me. Hydra is always prepared. Speaking of which, how is my ex-apprentice...Natalia?"

"You mean Natasha?"

"Romanova. Yes."

"You trained the Black Widow?! You're bluffing."

The Soldier runs his hand through his hair and lets out a dark chuckle, "Ask her for yourself then, since you're so convinced that what's left of SHIELD will find you."

"They will though. SHIELD has eyes everywhere, even in the most unexpected places and we both know for a fact that Steve will hunt you down."

"Excellent. I'm prepared to kill anyone who gets in my way, even if it isn't on my assignement list."

Mariya glared at the Soldier, trying her best not to strike him across the face, "I swear to God if you do anything to hurt any of them, I'll kill you myself."

The Soldier lets out another laugh but this time, it has a more sadistic tone behind it, "You fear me. You're just like everyone else. You're incapable, weak, stupid; you have no chance. But if you do try to kill me, what makes you so sure that I won't kill you first."

"You wont."

The Soldier whips his head to face Mariya and lets out a low growl, "Don't underestmate me. You may think you have some control over me but you're forgetting that I've killed hundreds of people before you. Sure, you may be a link to my past but if you step over your limits, I will take you out before you can even breathe your last breath."

Mariya glares at the Soldier and lets out a deep sigh before slumping in her seat, "You have serious mental issues and anger management problems you know that? Hopefully SHIELD can take care of that and turn you back into a normal individual."

"Flight 229 to Los Angeles, California is now boarding. Please have your tickets and bags prepared."

The Soldier stands up and grabs the bags, slinging them over his shoulder, "C'mon let's go."

Mariya grabs her own bag and proceeds to go to the checkpoint, the Soldier following her closely, and soon the two of them are seated on the plane.

Unknown to both of them, the entire airport is now surrounded by SHIELD agents, quickly hunting through the computer databases and checking every check in station.

Maria Hill looks up at the screen and bites her lower lip in frustration, "There's no way they'd use her real name Sir and for all we know they could be heading to Tokyo or Paris."

"Think Agent Hill. What places besides Russia would the Soldier need to visit?"

"Where was Mariya's residence before DC?"

Fury stared at the ground as he tried to recall the place Mariya had told him about before she decided to reside with SHIELD. "She was born in Russia...but her parents later relocated her to Los Angeles."

"The 229 flight to Los Angeles, California is now ready for departure."

"Shit!"

Both Hill and Fury run towards the direction of the flight area, SHIELD agents closely following behind them. "Whatever you do, stop that flight!"

The agents make their way past security and finally reach the checkpoint, but to their dismay, the plane is already preparing to take off.

Fury clenches his fist in frustration and grabs his phone, "I want all agents in the Los Angeles area to be on the lookout for a male and female passenger on Flight 229 to Los Angeles. The male is extremely dangerous and the female is an agent of SHIELD being held against her will. Does anyone copy?"

"I copy that."

"Natasha? You're in the DC area, not Los Angeles. Did you not hear the message?"

"Oh don't worry Nick, we've got this taken care of."

"What do you mean?" Suddenly the line goes dead. "Damn it!

Six rows behind the Soldier and Mariya sits Natasha and Steve, clad in civilian clothing with stern expressions on their faces. "We've got them right where we need them."

I'm back! I'm so sorry for the hiatus I went on but i'll do my best to upload when I can :) Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please feel free to rate, comment, or favorite!


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